Public reader discussion about Little Brother in the WeRead Catalog by Cory Doctorow.
By tender-badger
Yeah, I really enjoyed it overall. It was a fun read, but it did feel a bit preachy at times. My favorite Doctorow book is still For the Win!, so I’d recommend this one to people who liked Ender’s Game.
By electricDragon14
Hey! I’m Cory Doctorow—writer, activist, and journalist, and I’ve been involved in a bunch of privacy stuff. I just put out *HOW TO DESTROY SURVEILLANCE CAPITALISM* with OneZero. It’s a short ebook, and the gist is that big tech’s surveillance is scary and harmful, but “surveillance capitalism” is really a monopoly problem too—like how those tech giants block us from getting good privacy laws passed. I’m also about to release *ATTACK SURFACE*, the third Little Brother book. It’s a set of fast technothrillers that kind of uses sci-fi momentum to show how technology can give people power and also take it away. And there’s the *ATTACK SURFACE* audiobook—there was a record-setting Kickstarter. I made that run partly to dodge Amazon/Audible’s DRM, which feels super invasive and also just helps lock in Amazon’s total control over audiobooks. I’ve worked with the EFF for almost two decades. Lately I’ve been focusing on “competitive compatibility,” basically trying to knock out the legal stuff Big Tech uses to stop new tech from working with the stuff that already dominates, since that blocks both competition and better privacy. Anyway, hope you’ll check out the IAMA on r/Privacy!
By WireBookmark
If you’re not familiar with him, Cory Doctorow wrote *Little Brother*, which is basically fiction but also pretty much a warning about state surveillance and the whole security-state vibe. He’s been pretty outspoken about things like the PATRIOT Act, the NSA, DHS, and other laws/groups that are meant to keep people “safe,” but also seem to mess with civil rights and freedoms. He also tends to go after the state, capitalism, and a lot of modern culture. I don’t think Sam’s had a science fiction writer on the podcast yet, so Cory would probably be the first. I’d really like to see him get on, just so they can talk about how tech can get used when politicians and business elites are driving it, and what regular people can do so we don’t end up in some cyberpunk nightmare that feels less and less like fiction these days.
By brisk-porch
I also really liked Walkaway and Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom, but they didn’t really hit the same way as the Little Brother books did for me.
By noisydog
I’m trying to find a few more books for my brother that aren’t the usual picks like Harry Potter or Percy Jackson, so I figured I’d ask for suggestions. He’s 11, but he really doesn’t want anything “childish.” He tried Jurassic Park for a bit, but eventually he stopped reading it. He’s into war planes and ships, dinosaurs, fantasy, and anything Star Wars-ish. I know it’s kinda all over the place 😂 but I feel like there’s probably something that could work for him if it has a main character he can actually relate to. I also really want to get him reading again—I used to read all the time at his age, but my interests were totally different, so I’m kind of stuck. (I was also super into vampires at the time lol) Any ideas would be great!
By FogSage
My 11-year-old sister won’t read at all. Like, literally all day she watches YouTube on her iPad. When I was that age, my brother got me into books by just reading in front of me, and I ended up picking it up myself. With her, she mostly just blows me off and says books are dumb. Our relationship is actually pretty good, but even when I take the iPad and try handing her a book, she just pretends I’m not there and sits there in silence for hours like it’s punishment. Has anyone else dealt with something like this?
By ivory-lynx67
I started worrying about my 7-year-old brother turning into the “lazy reader” type like a few people I knew in college. I’m totally cool with messing up sometimes, but these guys felt different. Like one time I watched this dude take over after a girl and I swear it killed the whole good vibe she had. Anyway, I’m not saying I’m perfect either—I mess up plenty. Me and my brother don’t really get along. I’m mean to him most of the time, honestly. Still, I do care about him. So during the holidays I had him read those books we had around, since I didn’t even know what level he was at and we just had to work with what our parents got. I made him write out a bunch of letter combos and the sounds they make. It was a pain, because English is just… weird sometimes. I honestly don’t even know how I learned to read in the first place. At first he acted like it was a punishment and he’d cry every time he got something wrong. And yeah, I kinda made it worse by threatening him with reading whenever he acted up. Then during breaks I’d let him watch cartoons and mess around. After a while it clicked and he’s reading way better now. I kind of want him to get good enough that he doesn’t need me pushing him anymore. He says he’s gonna start a new book next. I think it’ll help his comprehension and memory. Eventually he’ll read a real novel—I’m thinking about The Jungle Book, but I already know the Indian names are gonna mess him up lol.
By BlackIsland29
Hey! Cory Doctorow here—writer of sci-fi and big on digital media freedom stuff. My latest book, Pirate Cinema, is out now and it’s basically wrecking the internet. You can grab it here: http://craphound.com/pc and also here: http://www.humblebundle.com Feel free to ask me anything. I’ll be taking questions for about two hours starting at 4:00 PM ET. Verification: https://twitter.com/doctorow/status/256226816237379584 Edit: Thanks everyone—these were really good questions and I had a blast answering. AAAAA+++ totally would do business again!!!!1ONE!!!1
By marginFox
I didn’t really know where to start with Cory Doctorow, so someone suggested I jump in with *Little Brother*. Also: quick shout-out to the person at Of Science and Swords in Melbourne—they were crazy helpful and we talked for like 20 minutes. Sorry too, because after all that, they definitely deserved me actually buying the book, but I ended up borrowing it from my local library instead. Anyway, after all the love people online (and in the online community) have for him, I feel like maybe I just built it up too much for myself. The premise is awesome, but I was kind of let down by how it was done. I can tell the themes matter a lot to Doctorow, but sometimes the writing felt really preachy, like I was being talked at instead of just enjoying a novel. And a few times the pacing totally stopped—like there’d be these big info dumps, and as someone who isn’t super into the technical details the characters are, it got hard to stay with it. I don’t want to write him off, so I might give him another shot, but yeah… *Little Brother* didn’t hit the way I expected. Anyone else feel similarly, or totally disagree?
By chapter_cricket
Just finished Walkaway and I really loved it. What should I read next from him? Also, if you’ve got favorites, which ones would you put at the top and how would you rank them?
By NinaInTucson95
Honestly, it makes me wonder—how does someone even end up knowing that much about computers and networks? I’m a second-year CS major, and I feel pretty comfortable with the basics, but I’m not sure where to go next to learn more.
By annotationcrescent
When I was around his age, I was really into fantasy stuff, so I suggested Ranger’s Apprentice by John Flanagan (I know it might not be the best first pick). He seemed to like it at first, but then he just got bored. I’m hoping I can help him see how fun reading can be again—any recommendations? Edit: I messed up the author’s name. Edit 2: Thanks everyone! I’ll go through all of them with my brother.
By midnight-thyme6
I finally got through the audiobook, which you can’t get on Audible (you have to buy the audio files), but at least it’s DRM-free. I started it way back as a kid and never finished, so that felt overdue. The book digs into what’s going on in America today in a really good way, even though it’s an almost 20-year-old YA novel—I enjoyed it a ton as an adult too. It’s super thought-provoking, kind of informative, and also kept me on edge the whole time. I’m not sure I’ll continue the series since I usually want newer ideas, but I’ll definitely check out this author again.
By coupletAmber
I’ve kind of been dealing with it in my own head, like I was the only one. I’ve read a few of his books, but none of them really grabbed me. The main characters always feel a bit out of reach, like I’m not fully getting them.
By orbit-eagle48
I’ve read Fahrenheit 451 a few times now, and yeah, it’s probably my favorite book ever. I really love the ideas, and the whole thing just flows so well. And honestly, I feel like most of Ray Bradbury’s stuff is on that same level. Even the short story collections like The Illustrated Man feel great. What do you all think about Bradbury—what’s your favorite, how do you think he writes, anything like that? I just really enjoy him as a sci-fi author.
By HawkBirch2001
Anyone have recommendations for books/authors like Cory Doctorow’s Little Brother, Homeland, or Pirate Cinema? I’m looking for more in that kind of vibe. Thanks!
By coralseal
I feel like for a lot of people it starts with finding some series that totally grabs you when you’re young. So what actually got you into reading as a kid? For me, I really started getting into books in second grade—my friend basically told me to read the Warrior Cats series. It’s not like it’s “high art” or anything, but it was the first time I got really sucked into a fictional world, and it made me want to keep reading. That said, if I’m picking my real favorite kid series, I’d go with A Series of Unfortunate Events. The writing still feels weirdly fun and different, and I was honestly surprised at how well they still worked when I reread them recently. Curious what you all picked?
By Ink_Muddy
No real reason, I just wanted to see what other people would pick. Here are mine: - **Back When We Were Grown Ups (Anne Tyler)** — Feels easy to read, but it kind of gets existential about family and getting older. There are definitely some annoying characters, but overall it rang true for me, kind of sweet without being too sugary, and it hit pretty hard near the end. **7/10** - **Beloved (Toni Morrison)** — This is just a massive, powerful piece of writing. It somehow balances horror and beauty really well, and the characters make you want to cry for them. **10/10** - **Siddhartha (Herman Hesse)** — I didn’t love it. It feels way too sure of itself, like it’s dropping huge life-changing wisdom, but it doesn’t actually give much of a clear philosophy. More or less like a worse version of *The Alchemist*. **3/10** - **A Shining (Jon Fosse)** — Not close to Fosse’s best, and also not the most interesting death-in-first-person thing I’ve read. It’s still not bad, but it just doesn’t do much. **5/10** - **Reading Lolita in Tehran (Azar Nafisi)** — A bit clunky in how it mixes memoir with history/sociology/literary criticism, but the individual sections are mostly really strong. It’s got a lot packed into it. **8/10**
By ProudEnvelope6414
Little Brother feels so strong mostly because it’s weirdly believable. Like, a kid could actually follow what’s going on, and Doctorow will sometimes pause the action just to spell everything out. Still, that Yudkowsky point from the December update kind of sticks with me: a lot of people don’t keep the fun pace going, and Doctorow can end up sacrificing tension just to drop more information on you. Neal Stephenson does a better job of balancing it, imo. He’ll go on for pages about something random like cereal or Mesopotamian stuff, but it doesn’t feel like dead time because it’s tied to who people are. And you usually know the story’s about to kick into something way more exciting—like a big weapon showdown, a verbal takedown, or something with a submarine. So yeah, tl;dr: I think Doctorow ends up with a much more boring read than Eliezer. Stephenson’s worth checking out.
By cosmos_peastone
Friendly reminder: when you buy a Humble game bundle, you can tweak where your money goes. Just scroll down and hit “Adjust Donation,” then choose “Custom Amount” so you can change what % goes to the developers/publishers, Humble Bundle, and the charity.